Strategies & Tips - Stress

Learning helpful strategies and tips to manage your mental fitness or support you when you’re finding things tough is a great place to start. You can use the ‘Filter by Topic’ button below to select a specific topic you want to focus on, otherwise just scroll down to see the different strategies and tips for all the topics you’ll find on this site.

Avoid Coffee, Alcohol & Nicotine

These three are known to disrupt sleep, make you feel more anxious and for some people increase their heart rate and blood pressure. If you’re already feeling stressed or know you are affected by these things then taking a break from them is a good move.

Manage Your Time

Getting caught with too many jobs to do and not enough time can be very stressful. Try focusing on one job at a time. Manage your week by using a calendar or diary and prioritise the things that are most important.

Ask For Help

Stress is a common experience for a lot of people. If you don’t feel like you can cope with your stress on your own, or you feel like some support would be helpful, ask someone you trust.

Slow It Down

Although it can sometimes seem impossible to control the way you’re feeling, there are some strategies you can use to calm your body’s response to stress. Yoga, deep breathing exercises, visualization and meditation are all great ways to slow things down and reduce feelings of stress.

Keep An Eye On Your Stress Levels

Often we can feel ourselves starting to get run down, irritable and tired. If you feel yourself getting increasingly stressed, do something about it. This could mean taking a day off to rest, talking to a friend or booking in a massage or something you enjoy.

Know Your Triggers

The reasons why you feel stressed can be very different to your mates’. It might be speaking in public situations, stressing about fitness testing or worrying about your performances on the field. Knowing what makes you feel stressed can help you target where you need support.

HeadFirst

This site was created to help players, coaches, support staff and families in the rugby community to support their own wellbeing and that of others.

We acknowledge the support of The Health Promotion Agency, Le Va and the Mental Health Foundation.